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Saturday, November 29, 2014

I follow photography. It's my thing. It's a lifelong hobby that brings me joy and happiness. I also follow religion and belief too. It brings me less joy and happiness, but it tends to make me think and that is okay. Sometimes photography and religion mix. Like this story about actress Jena Malone.

On Friday, Jena Malone turned 30, debuted her first solo photography show and celebrated the release of her latest film, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 1), which went on to have the biggest opening weekend of any movie this year (though she only appears for a few seconds). All three pivotal events make up what she calls a "crazy triangle" influenced by Saturn Return, or the life-changing astrological transition that she says she's been in the thick of for the past two years.

"crazy triangle" influenced by Saturn Return, or the life-changing astrological transition... Wait, what? Everything was moving along well until we took a turn towards astrology, and then the story went south.

I was originally attracted to the story because of the images. I was curious. What would the young photographer Jena Malone produce? I hoped for interesting and got what looks like photos that my mom would take while on vacation. Her show is a vanity showcase of little substance, but her life looks worse. Astrology, triangls seeds… It all feeds my thinking that successful actors are just people with access to more of everything than the rest of us. They are people with all the same kookie hangups, shallow thinking and limitations as the rest of us. Why do we treat them special? Why do we idolize them? Why do we treat a woman whose experience in photography is limited to studying photography at a Jr. college as if her snapshots of Burma are special?

I find myself asking a lot of questions these day. One that comes to mind often is, what is the real role of a pastor? With all the negative media coverage these days, I have ample evidence of what a pastor’s role should not be. I have precious little exposure to what a pastor's role should be. I need to fix that. If I am to highlight problems in religion, I think balance is required.

I can find nothing redeeming in the words of Pastor Earl Carter.

“I don’t hate gays, I’m just like the doctor who hates disease, I fight the disease,” Carter added. “My gospel is like chemotherapy. We try to get to the disease. And the police fighting crime, what are we fighting? Or are we making concessions for these sins?”

The words, “My gospel is like Chemotherapy” stand out. Chemotherapy is a horrible analogy and brings to mind suffering and pain. Pastor Earl Carter is saying that it is his job to bring suffering and pain to LGBT people. Does that sound anything like the message of Jesus?

Thursday, November 27, 2014

“Even if I’m going to drop my kids off, or I need to park somewhere, I’m like, ‘OK God, you know I’m in this parking lot, you know any place you can open up for me would be great!’ I just have this relationship- I’m not dumbing down prayer. What I’m doing- it’s just part of my life.”

Victoria Osteen

The Christian notion that god listens to our silly prayers and then intervenes in the lives of people to make our desires come true makes no sense at all when one considers the concept of free will. Why do people think this way? In Victoria Osteen’s scenario, god would stop running the universe to make Mr. Nobody stop his shopping and open a place close to mall for the princess of Christian bullshit to park. I mean, wtf?

According to the Battle Creek Enquirer, 35-year-old John Balyo plead guilty to the sexual assault, which Balyo arranged with the help of another man, Ronald L. Moser, 42, of Battle Creek, who has admitted to procuring boys for Balyo to have sex with."

"The President blames himself for the Democrat’s big losses Election Day. ‘We have not been successful in going out there and letting people know what it is that we’re trying to do and why this is the right direction,’ he said Sunday.

In other words, he didn’t sufficiently tout the Administration’s accomplishments.

I respectfully disagree.

If you want a single reason for why Democrats lost big on Election Day 2014 it’s this: Median household income continues to drop. This is the first “recovery” in memory when this has happened.

“Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) has no problem using dramatic language to make a point. In fact, the congressman, who received some heat for comparing Tea Party members to the segregationist, ‘white crackers’ of the Jim Crow era, is surprised that his word choice caused any controversy at all."

Seriously now… does anybody think he thought it was a term of endearment?